Judge Abbie Hellerstein

The dramatic final moments of United Airlines Flight 93 that were captured on a cockpit voice recorder can be played for a jury at the first trial stemming from lawsuits filed after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a judge ruled Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein ruled that jurors can't listen to the entire tape but can hear portions that the hijacked passengers may have heard.

Passengers Can Hear Four Minutes

He also said jurors could hear a 4-minute-long stretch of the sounds of passengers trying to force their way into the cockpit and retake the airplane.

The cockpit voice recording has never been publicly released, though it was played at the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui in Virginia.

Fl 93 Was Shot Down

Whether it was hit over Shankville, or somewhere else, it was blown up. The Pentagon crowd figured the passengers were dead no matter what, and they weren't about to let it fly into a crowded downtown.

First - The Tankers Were Scrambled

There is an active tanker base in New Jersey

Second - The Jets Were Scrambled

You have ambulances, police, fire departments, and an Air Force.

 

Snapshot of the Air Force

336,081 individuals are on active duty
69,242 officers and 266,839 enlisted personnel
The Air Force has 13,490 pilots, 4,415 navigators, 1,305 air battle managers and 33,536 non-rated line officers in the grades of lieutenant colonel and below

The Air National Guard

The ANG has approximately 4,200 pilots